Rose's Bear: A BBW Werebear Shifter Romance

Frontmatter

Rose's Bear: A BBW Paranormal Fairy Tale

Letter from the Author

Other Books by Ellen Dominick

Copyright

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“Do you think it’s real?”

Rose looked over to her sister. For some reason, she couldn’t get the question out of her mind.

“What’s real?” Gwen asked. She didn’t even look up from the book she was reading.

“The forest. You know, like how Mom says everything is dangerous out there. Do you think it’s true?”
 

“I don’t know,” Gwen said. “Why should we go into the forest anyway? We have everything we need right here.”

Rose looked at her sister again. Her long hair flowed over her shoulders. Her pale skin had just the right amount of pink blush to it, and her hands were long, thin, and elegant as she turned the page. Of course Gwen didn’t care about the forest. Some prince would probably come and snatch her up. She’d marry him and the whole realm would talk about the beautiful princess with skin white as snow.

But what about her? Rose looked down at her dress. It was dirty from running around the glen that surrounded their house. She knew her body was softer than Gwen’s, her hips wider and curvier. Rose wasn’t the quiet type to stay at home and read all day. So what prince was going to rescue
her
?

She gazed into the darkness of the forest. Just how bad could it
be
?

“Yeah...” Rose said. She forced a laugh. “Why would we want to go into the forest anyway?”

But the question wouldn’t leave her. Day after day, Rose found herself staring off into the forest. Would she find monsters? Would it be dangerous? Or would it be
wonderful
?

It felt like something was pulling her in. Something that wanted her to step beyond the borders of their tiny glen. But should she?

Soon it was Rose’s 18th birthday. They celebrated as they always had, with a small cupcake and a song. Rose got the day off from chores, and spent the time climbing the large tree that hung over their house.
 

Rose peered through the branches at the seemingly endless expanse of trees that made up the forest. All she could see were thick, dark leaves continuing into the distance and the perfectly blue sky that floated above them.
 

It was always like this. No clouds, no rain. Just clear skies. Rose wished that once,
just once
, something different could happen.

 
And that's when she saw it.

Out there, in the forest, one of the trees was shaking. The leaves rustled together, making a noise she had never heard coming from the forest before. But that wasn't the only thing. There was a voice. A piercing cry shot out from the darkness around her glen.

"Help!"

That wasn't Gwen and it wasn't their mother. Rose clambered down off the tree. She looked around. Both her sister and her mother were sitting in the house, calmly reading and cleaning. Didn't they hear that?

There was another cry, louder this time. Rose had never heard anyone scream like this, but she could tell that whoever was making these strange noises must be in a dangerous situation.

Rose ran to the edge of the glen. She stood there, looking into the darkness. Should she go? What about the danger her mother told her about? Maybe that's what was hurting this person. Maybe it would hurt her too.

The cries didn't stop, and Rose shot a glance over her shoulder to see if her family had noticed anything. No. They were too busy with their own lives. Would they even notice if she went into the forest?

Rose placed her toe at the very edge of the glen. She slid it over the border, screwing her eyes tight and holding her breath. But nothing happened. Her mother didn't run screaming out of the house. Her toe wasn't lopped off.

Now she was braver. Rose slid her whole foot across the barrier. Finally, she hopped across. She did it, she was actually in the forest!
 

Even though she was only an inch away from her clan, everything was different. The darkness made it difficult to see, and even the air smelled different. Rose stood there, taking in the scene until a yell shocked her out of her reverie. She suddenly remembered why she was there in the first place.

Rose took off running through the dense foliage. She didn't know where to go, but went in the direction of all the noise. It seemed like she could keep running forever, but finally she made it.

There was a small man,about the size of a small child. Even though he only came up to Rose's knee, she was sure he was even older than her mother. He had a long, white beard that was even longer than Rose's own hair. It was tangled and stuck in the branches of the tree, and the little man was struggling to get out. He looked at Rose and twisted his face.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" he said. "Get me out of here!"

It took a moment for Rose to get over her shock. Was everyone outside of the glen this rude? She tried to help the little man by pulling on the beard but that only wrapped the beard tighter around the branches.

"What are you, stupid?" the dwarf yelled.

For a second, Rose thought about leaving. She should just go back to her glen. She didn't need this kind of harassment from a tiny man stuck in a tree.

"Do you want me to help you or not? Because I can leave you right here," Rose said.
 

She stomped her foot. Her heart raced as she spoke. She's never been so rude to someone in her entire life. Mother always said it was important to be polite.

But Rose's threat seemed to have worked. The little man calmed down a bit.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry," he said. "Just get me out of here!"

Rose looked at the situation. She wasn't sure what to do. She had already tried pulling, and she wasn't strong enough to break the tree. So what should she do?

While she was thinking, Rose dug her hands into her pockets. She felt something cool and metallic. Scissors! Perfect.

She pulled the scissors out of her pocket and walked towards the man. As soon as he saw them glinting in the light, he started to yell.

"What do you think you're doing? Get away from me with the scissors!"

Rose ignored him. This was the only way. She snipped as he kicked and screamed, and finally he was free. But instead of thanking her, the little man started to scream again.

"Look at what you've done! Look at my lovely beard!" he said. "How could you? I'll make you pay!"

At first, Rose didn't believe his threats. After all, how much harm could a man the size of a child do to her? But when he got closer, she realized that he was stronger than he seemed.

The dwarf grabbed her leg and pulled her so that she fell to the ground.

"I know who you are," he said. His smile was full of long sharp teeth. "You're one of those pure maidens who lives in the glen. I've been waiting
years
to get my hands on one of you two."

Rose struggled, trying to get up, but the dwarf overpowered her. He pinned her hands to her sides and licked her face with a long tongue.

"It figures it would be you, Rose. You never
could
listen to your mother…"

Rose started to cry. She was so stupid. Why had she ever even left the glen? Why did she have to help this evil little man?

There was a rustling in the trees and the dwarf turned his head sharply. He twisted his features, making his mouth into a frown.

"Looks like we'll have to be quick with this one," he said and reached for Rose's dress.

She closed her eyes. Rose didn't want to see what would happen next.
 

But instead of what she expected, Rose heard a loud noise. It didn't sound human, but
animal
. It was, what do you call it? A growl.
 

The little man yelled. There was another growl, and Rose could feel his hands leaving her body. He was gone. But the other thing, was it still there?

You're safe now.

The words came directly into Rose's mind. She screamed. What sort of witchcraft was happening in these strange woods?

Open your eyes
.

Still afraid, Rose did what the voice told her. As she opened her eyes, she saw a large beast standing above her. She screamed again, and closed her eyes.

What
was
that? Rose had never seen anything larger than a squirrel in her glen, and this monster looked huge. It looked
feral
.

The beast got closer. Rose could smell it, the scent of earth, sweat, and
something else
clung to it. Rose had never smelled it before. Was it musk? The scent of
wildness
?

It snorted above her. Its breath was hot and seemed to be getting closer and closer to her face. It let out a long, low growl that rattled Rose's bones. Was she going to be eaten now, too? Rose felt the moist fur against her cheek.

Don't be afraid. The dwarf is gone now.

Rose peered at the beast with one eye. When she saw how close it was, how its size dwarfed her body, she screamed.

"What
are
you! What do you want from me?"

I'm just a bear. And I don't want anything. I just saved you, that's all.

When she saw that the bear wasn't coming any closer, Rose calmed down a little. She looked at him, still not sure what to believe. She'd already been tricked once in these woods.

"Why should I trust you?" Rose asked.

You don't have to.

After that, the bear turned around. He started to walk back into the darkness.

As he moved, Rose noticed a sharp scent. It wasn't the bear, and it wasn't there before. Then she saw it, a pool of red liquid growing near the beast. Something short and sharp was sticking out of the bear's back.

"Wait! Wait!" she yelled.
 

Rose ran after the bear, throwing herself in front of him.

"The dwarf did that, didn't he? I'm sorry!"

The bear didn't say anything. His large eyes stared into hers. He looked like he was waiting for something.

"I can't let you go alone. Please, let me help you," Rose said. "Come home with me."

She tugged at the big animal, pulling at his fur. Surprisingly, he let himself be pulled.

When they reached the glen, it was night time. The sky was dark, and the lights were on in Rose's little cottage. As soon as she appeared from behind the trees, she heard her mother's voice. She came running out the door.

"Rose, where were you? I told you never to leave the glen, and we thought you might be hurt, and…"

Rose's mother's voice trailed off when she noticed the lumbering shape behind her daughter. She stopped in her tracks, slumped to her knees, and fell over.

Gwen, hearing the commotion, ran out too. She saw her mother on the ground and went to her, holding her in her arms. She looked up and saw Rose. Then Gwen looked to the bear. She looked back at Rose.

"
Really
Rose," she said. "What have you gone and done
this
time?"

"You know what Gwen,
shut up
," Rose said.

She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. Rose had never talked to her sister that way before.

"This is my friend…"
 

Khole

"Khole. He saved me in the forest and now he's hurt. So I'm going to take care of him, and he's going to sleep here tonight."

Rose looked at her sister. Gwen looked back with wide eyes. Then she turned to their mother.

"Fine. Suit yourself. But remember what mother told us about the forest," she said. "Things there aren't always what they seem, and it looks like you are already getting into trouble."

Rose didn't respond. She just took Khole over to the cottage. First, she gathered the supplies she needed. A pitcher full of water and a bowl, a bit of cloth she ripped from her own dress with her teeth, some balm made from flowers blooming in the garden. When she came back to Khole, her arms were full.

It was hard to maneuver around Khole's large body, but somehow Rose managed to do it. She removed the small knife that was sticking out of his back, washed his wound, applied the balm, and bandaged him up.

Thank you
.

Khole's voice boomed in Rose's mind.

I've caused you enough trouble. I'm going back to the woods.

The big bear turned and headed towards the forest. As he tried to walk, one of his legs dragged slowly behind him.

"No!" Rose yelled. "You are staying. You are going to sleep by our fireplace until you get better. I'm not going to let you go!"

Her hands curled into fists and her arms shook as she spoke. If she had to stand there much longer, she worried she might cry.

The bear came closer to Rose. He towered above her, dwarfing her with his size. Khole bared his teeth, showing long, sharp, pointy tips. Rose was sure that he could snap her in two if he wanted.

Khole's eyes glowed green and he growled. Rose wanted to curl into a ball. Her stomach was about to empty itself. This was such a stupid idea, why did all of this have to happen on her 18th birthday?